Zamboanga Peninsula fisheries production up in 2013

ZAMBOANGA CITY (MindaNews/13 March)-Fisheries production in the Zamboanga Peninsula or Region 9 has improved last year compared to 2012, an official of the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) said.

Citing data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, Mewchun Pamaran, NSCB regional director, said fisheries production increased by 1.77 percent or 341,579 metric tons (MT) to 19,641,524 MT in 2013 from 19,299,945 MT the previous year.

Pamaran said this came after the production in commercial fisheries increased by 2.04 percent or 169,083 MT from 8,337,927 MT in 2012 to 8,507,010 MT last year. He added the municipal fisheries also rose by 3.86 percent or 253,529 MT to 6,815,702 MT in 2013 from 6,562,173 MT in 2012.

However, Pamaran said that aquaculture production has declined by 81,663 MT or 1.86 percent from 4,400,475 MT in 2012 to 4,318,812 MT in 2013. Aquaculture accounts for 22 percent of the total fisheries production in the region last year.

Zamboanga City and Zamboanga del Sur have registered an increase in commercial fisheries production while those in Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga Sibugay declined, Pamaran said.

Commercial fisheries account for 43 percent of the total fisheries production in the region last year.

Pamaran said that municipal fisheries production also increased by 253,529 MT to 6,815,702 MT in 2013 from 6,562,173 MT the previous year.

She said that Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga Sibugay provinces have registered an increase in municipal fisheries production, at 9.07 percent and 16.32 percent, respectively.

The municipal fisheries production of Zamboanga del Sur in 2013 was 1,707,215 MT from 1,565,216 MT in 2012, while that of Zamboanga Sibugay was 1,485,054 MT in 2012 to 1,727,465 in 2013.

Municipal fisheries account for about 35 percent of the total fisheries production in the region in 2013. (MindaNews)